


In Time

by FlyawaySoul



Series: The Road to Peace [3]
Category: D&D - Fandom, Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: Desert, Dirty Talk, Elf (D&D), Elf/Demon relationship, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Messy, Orgasm Denial, Original Character(s), Reunion Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Size Difference, Size Kink
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:13:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25831882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlyawaySoul/pseuds/FlyawaySoul
Summary: Alaysia reunites with Lorkhan after having cured his people of the curse of the dark sign. With a bet to win with the young Demon King, she ignores feelings of something more than friendship (and the occasional good lay) beginning to blossom between them.
Relationships: Alaysia/Lorkhan, Elf/Demon - Relationship, Moon Elf/Obyrith, OC/OC
Series: The Road to Peace [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1709749
Comments: 3





	1. In Time

_ Alaysia stalked forward, eyeing the efreet as her party members argued back and forth about what they should use their third wish for. One had been used to grant their flying ship,  _ the Discovery of Hope _ , an infinite power supply so they didn’t need to dump spell energy into it to travel any longer. The cleric, the one who had found and opened the bottle, to begin with, had tried to have two of his wishes granted. Much to his and the efreet’s frustration, the creature couldn’t grant them.  _

_ The second wish showed them where to find a weakness of their ultimate quarry, Therizdun. Now there was one left. Should she risk it? Dare she? What if it backfired? Efreets like this one were dangerous things. All their power was trapped in a bottle and they were only free once the third wish was granted. More often than not, they would do their damnedest to twist those wishes back against their recipients out of spite, but efreet magic was strong. It could work miracles.  _

_ She had to try.  _

_ “I wish,” she paused as the party fell silent, watching and waiting for her words with a nervous edge to their collective stares, “That the Curse of the Dark Sign was harmlessly lifted from everyone who is afflicted with it,” she paused, holding up her hand to indicate she was chewing on her words before adding what could perhaps be considered a selfish stipulation, “starting with my friend, Lorkhan, King of Dragmire.” She hoped the worst that could happen was that Lorkhan was the only one who would be cured and he was angry she hadn’t put his people first. She was a selfish beast. She could live with that.  _

_ The efreet looked at her for a long moment and Alaysia feared the worst. That sinking feeling only deepened as the efreet smiled and held his arms out wide, glowing motes of light gathering in his palms like fist-fulls of fireflies on display.  _

_ “It is done!” His hands came together in a thunderous clap that shook the lich’s tomb and dispersed the light in a shockwave. The efreet was gone with the light he had held in his palms. Alaysia’s heart somehow managed to sink and soar at the same time, but she had to be sure.  _

_ Hands shaking, she began running for the entrance of the tomb. Her stone didn’t work in this veritable hellhole, so she had to get out. Abraxos, now fitted with a collar that allowed him to be shrunken down to his infant size, just a bit bigger than Lump, clutched at her and squawked indignantly at the sudden sprint. Lump himself had elected to stay on the ship where it was safer.  _

_ When she broke through the entranceway of the tomb, she fell to her knees, panting and staring at the stone in trepidation, afraid that she had inadvertently cursed her friend and his kingdom, but too terrified of not knowing to remain silent for the two days it would take them to go to the Klauthian Veil to treat with Old Snarl and then continue on their trek to Anaurach. The tremors wracking her fingers nearly made her fumble the sending stone as she wrenched it from her bag. The first few times she tried to use it, the spell failed, probably one last ‘fuck you’ from the now-slain lich. _

Lorkhan?  _ Even her thoughts shivered as she waited for him to answer.  _

Yes?  _ The relief she felt as he answered, sounding blessedly normal. Utterly unfazed. A mountain in a hurricane.  _

Oh, thank the gods.  _ He remained silent, letting her gather her thoughts so she could explain why she was so frantic.  _ Do me a favor?

What do you need? _ His voice was as deep and rich as a bowl of honey.  _

The hole in your chest. The Dark Sign. Is it still there?  _ She could hear the halting confusion in his voice when he answered.  _

Alaysia, what do you… _ He trailed off, voice morphing from confusion to wonder.  _ Alaysia. What did you do?

Your people. Do they still have it?  _ She received no answer for a long time. Long enough that her party was able to gather the loot they had found in the crypt and begin loading it on to the ship. Alaysia had since started pacing in the undergrowth nearby.  _

I don’t know what you did, but thank you. I owe you-  _ his voice cut off and cracked, emotion creeping forward as the thoughts were transmitted across the continent from one stone to another,  _ I owe you so much.  _ We  _ owe you so much. 

Oh, thank the gods.  _ Alaysia’s joyous relief was just as apparent.  _ I won’t lie to you, what I did was dangerous. I was so worried I’d end up hurting you all instead of helping.  _ The words sounded breathless in her mind, even to her.  _ But the only thing I could think was that I had almost endless power at my disposal and it was the best chance at getting you and your people a cure for that curse.  _ She was almost giddy. The nervous energy from moments ago was seething out of her like steam as she spoke in quick, excited bursts. She felt like she was rambling, but she couldn’t stop.  _ I regretted it almost immediately, efreet are loath to actually grant wishes without twisting them. I did my best to word it well, but I was so scared.  _ Alaysia finally wound down, the anxiety released into the world. Lorkhan and his people were safe. All was well. For  _ **_once_ ** _ , the world just… didn’t bite her in the ass. The king took a long time to respond.  _

I… you spent infinite power,  _ he paused, unsure? Impressed? Amazed? _ On… me?

_ She laughed through the mental connection.  _ Of course, I did. You needed a miracle and when I stumbled across one, I grabbed it for you. 

I-I um.  _ She felt rather than heard the deep breath he took as he gathered his wits about him.  _ I thank you. For everything. Alaysia,  _ he sounded like he might falter again, but instead, he gave a long, silent exhale that felt suspiciously like relief,  _ I can’t imagine what my life would have been without you.  _ Her laugh reached the party’s ears, garnering a few looks. Their dispositionally severe ranger and dragon rider didn’t laugh often when she was sober. _

Awful and boring, I would imagine,  _ her words were playful _ . I mean, missing out on a lay as good as I am? That’s practically a punishment from the gods. 

_ She talked to him a moment more. Bringing up their plans for when she and the party arrived - she had managed to snag a Rod of Security on a recent adventure and fully intended to take a vacation on a picturesque sunny beach when they arrived. It had been Lorkhan’s choice. Alaysia hated sand, but it would be worth it, she thought, to see Lorkhan relax outside of sex. _

_ Perhaps also the dubious idea of sex on the beach.  _

_ They continued to talk, another of Lorkhan’s largest problems suddenly gone had left him both grateful and with rare free time as Alaysia boarded the ship. Their conversation spanning the rest of the day as they conversed this way and that, often lingering on potential meetings they could have in the bedroom when she arrived.  _

_ Or out of the bedroom. They didn’t much care who might see them. Everyone in the city would probably hear them, anyways.  _

* * *

They’d been sailing for two days over the mainland. Yesterday they had cloaked the ship to hide it from any would-be trackers from the hobgoblin horde. Alaysia had been very careful to keep a sharp eye out. Even now in the small hours just past midnight, she and Abraxos flew silently and all but invisibly in the obsidian skies, her magics weaving them into the night like the predators they were. 

Pleased with her scouting, she returned to the invisible ship, enjoying the way that the flat planes of the desert stretched on into the night. Above her, the sky showed with particular clarity. It was a beautiful place, even with all of the sand. From what Lorkhan had told her, his people were doing well here. The Scimitar Mountains had shielded them from the prying eyes of the Horde and they had set up in a large city left behind by a human civilization that had abandoned the place long ago. Lorkhan had sounded quite pleased with it, though reestablishing crops in the desert was no small feat, even for his born and raised desert dwellers. 

Alaysia had intended to help with this as well but had not given Lorkhan any details about it for two reasons. One, the desert may simply have nothing left to give them, and two, she wanted to surprise him. Besides, she had a bet to win first. The thought made her excited. 

On and off, they had been speaking on the sending stones since leaving the tomb. Lorkhan, the King of Dragmire, Obyrith, and overall serious man, had been laughing and joking with her. It had been surreal and it had made her heart soar to be able to hear how much of a weight she had removed from his shoulders. He sounded like he could breathe now. He sounded like he could relax if only just a little. 

She had shared this news with Oraelia, their Domacian friend. She was the queen that had helped to teleport Lorkhan’s people, though they hadn’t told him at the time. She’d split off from them to oversee that and had a few rolls in the hay with Lorkhan herself in the two months she’d stayed with him. Much like Alaysia, Lorkhan had proved to be a kind, compassionate man in his own gruff way, and that had moved her to his cause, though Alaysia was sure that the sex hadn’t done anything to dissuade her as well. It was Oraelia’s demanding that they return to see Lorkhan, who she now also considered a friend, that had them going to Anaurach at all. 

Alaysia hadn’t minded that they’d slept together, of course. Alaysia had wrested several men and a couple of women as well into her own bed since she had been away. Elves were very seldom monogamous even with their spouses. Sadish, the human sorcerer who was in love with Oraelia on the other hand? Oh, the poor lad might have been fine if he hadn’t have had the stones to ask who was better between him and Lorkhan. Oraelia was not a good liar and, as she finally admitted, Lorkhan had decades more experience in bed and had been raised in the laps of concubines and prostitutes. Practice makes perfect. 

Luckily for him, it also meant all of the dragons Sadish had slept with in Sigil while under the effects of a potent drug concoction he decided to try weren’t going to get him into trouble with his lover as he had anticipated. Alaysia had let him think it would without correcting him out of spite after he tried to have his memories of it all erased rather than feeling guilty over it. Stupid boy didn’t even stop to learn about the woman he’d been sharing a bed with for a year now. He hadn’t known elves were societally polyamorous and Alaysia gleefully let him sweat his culpability for not taking the time to learn such basic things about her friend. 

Besides all of that. Alaysia and Oraelia had become close. They called one another “sister” in the common language. The word in the Elven tongue translated more to a feminine “dear one”. They were so close, in fact, that Sadish need not know that Alaysia was also better in Oraelia’s bed than he was, for much the same reason as Lorkhan. The thought made her chuckle when brought to mind. 

Something else tugged at her, though, resting in the background like a sleeping volcano: the bet she had made with Lorkhan. Alaysia had found a powerful artifact and stolen it from a dragon horde. It was a strength belt like the one Lorkhan had received from his allies amongst the fire giants. Lorkhan didn’t need his belt by any means, but this one, made by storm giants, was even more potent. Alaysia had come to leave it on Abraxos, as it a useful tool for him, but she wore it for now. She had bet Lorkhan that she could beat him in, gods save them all, an  _ arm-wrestling competition _ . 

Oh, how Lorkhan had laughed at that. Oh, how he had underestimated her. He was still curious to see what strange trick she may have had up her sleeve, though. She had bet on it, after all. That was what had truly caught his interest. She had made a bet against  _ him _ in a test of  _ strength.  _ Alaysia had been keeping Oraelia up to date on the situation as they went back and forth over the stone and she had at first been worried about Alaysia.

“Sister, I have seen that man lift oxen above his head without breaking a sweat. What did you bet him?” Alaysia explained that it was understood between the two of them that she would be cheating and that the real competition was making sure she didn’t get caught. She was giddy and scared, Oraelia was just giddy from that point on. Much like two young human girls, Alaysia was offering play-by-plays to Oraelia who had devoured them eagerly, excited at seeing her closest friend and Lorkhan draw ever closer, even if they didn’t see it as she could. 

Credit where it was due, Alaysia knew full well what the fluttering feeling in her chest was. She knew what the excited twist in her stomach meant. Alaysia had felt it nearly two hundred years ago and it had ruined her beyond repair after all was said and done. The knowledge that her once husband and their long passed son were back from the dead as revenants and had been avoiding her like the plague for some time now allowed her to feel a bit less guilty. If they had wanted to hurt or reclaim her, they would have come by now. With that thought held shakily in her mind, she was ready to let herself be affectionate. Lorkhan certainly had been, overtly and consistently, since she had lifted his curse. 

Even so, for all of her bravado when speaking about it, the bet made her nervous. She’d jokingly said that if she won, he had to meet her parents. Her mother and father were doting and sweet but constantly lived in hopes that she would someday remarry and return to the safety of home where she could take up the family business and they could continue to drown her in their sickly sweet affections. Alaysia wasn’t much one to bring people to see them because of the inevitable prying that came with it. 

_ Are you eating enough? How is your Abraxos? When will you be coming home again? Anyone  _ **_special_ ** _ in your life?  _ They were mercilessly loving and accepting of her nearly to a fault. 

Alaysia loved them with all her heart, but she hadn’t expected Lorkhan to agree to the bet after asking if this was another foreign social ritual he wasn’t aware of. Alaysia had laughed and explained that often people didn’t bring bedmates home to meet their parents unless they intended to keep them around and she planned to keep him about for a long time. It would make her parents happy to think she was in a romantic relationship, which their repeated sleeping together was as close a thing to that she’d been in since her husband. That had made him laugh too, but in a different way that she chose not to dwell on. 

What she hadn’t expected was his counter to her bet; that she stay with him for a month if she lost. He said he had realized that she was the only one in decades he had been interested in being around for any period of time and he had spent a sum total of three days or fewer with her since they met. Ever grateful and impressed with her, Lorkhan might have been affectionate after their last meeting, but he was even more so now. It was jarring, but it also caused that fluttering in her chest and that twisting in her stomach that she wanted to shy away from and lean into at the same time. Even then, it wasn’t until Oraelia’d had a long, serious talk with her about it that she considered maybe just seeing where this went. 

Alaysia knew that if she led him on and then pulled away it could trigger the volatile demonic nature of the goodhearted king. Lorkhan hadn’t expressed interest in affection for as long as anyone could remember and even then, that brief affection had been murdered before his eyes in an effort to break him by his father. It hadn’t worked, but from what Oraelia had told her about just how taken he seemed to be with her? If this went wrong it might just do it this time. It was a lot to think about and the pressure was suffocating. 

Apparently, the whole time Oraelia had spent with Lorkhan, sharing his bed most nights and assisting him throughout most days, she had seen him do many things. He spent sleepless nights pouring over books about this new continent and his new home in a ravenous way, only pausing to look up at her and ask what Alaysia’s favorite color was. He spent mornings assuring that the children and elderly all got their meals, as by his royal decree they were to be fed first with their limited food stores. He would tell them all stories of Igran Drastix and how they helped get them all here, but mostly he would tell stories of the Dragon Elf. 

When he finished there and went about his business through the city, he would pause and- ask a question about her. Oraelia didn’t know most of the answers. Lorkhan would spend the rest of the morning in the market, perusing and buying this and that. He didn’t need any of it, but it boosted morale and encouraged the merchants. Continuing on, he would sneak another question in. 

Oraelia said every day was like this. Always some small question or two about Alaysia snuck into his every activity. Sometimes he would break hours of silence just to ask her a question about the little elf and grumble when Oraelia had to tell him she didn’t know the answers to his questions. He hadn’t let a day go by without asking about her or talking about her in some way. His advisor, Bahn, had even noticed though he hadn’t said anything about it. 

Alaysia was intimidated by that. It was unexpected and, even more alarming, it wasn’t unwanted. She wanted to know those things about Lorkhan too. She found solace in the realization that he wouldn’t force her into more than she was comfortable with. He was kind, he was honest, and he knew about the family that had left her behind in life so many years ago. She had full confidence that if she sat and spoke with him, one friend to another, he would understand and respect her boundaries. 

Even if she did decide to move forward in whatever this was, she could also be confident in the fact that he was also strong. He was stronger than some gods and more powerful than any man had a right to be. He was durable. Life would not take him from her so easily as it had her previous lover. Lorkhan also wouldn’t be worn down by time and he was a viable match for her in bed and out. Against all odds, he was a  _ perfect _ match, actually. Lorkhan was precisely what she would have needed to risk herself again and the perfection of it terrified her because she was so very painstakingly  _ not _ perfect. 

A drunk, a whore, a raging lunatic. She was not fit to play queen to a people in such a precarious position as the Dragmirians. She was not fit to stand next to a king in the public eye. She didn’t even like sand and their new kingdom was in a desert. This entire line of thinking culminated into a final, horrifying thought. A king had to have an heir and that was something that Alaysia knew she may never be comfortable with. Not after her son. Not after watching him die in her arms. 

Oh, she had played accidental broodmare a few times over the past century. She never raised the bastard children, though. They were left with their various non-elven sires, as was typical of her kind. Elvish society only recognized offspring that the parent recognized as an heir, and Alaysia’s heir had passed long ago. She hadn’t had the heart to take another after that. Not after failing as a mother in her own eyes. 

She had spoken long and darkly of this matter to Orealia, who had listened with painstaking care as Alaysia detailed her plight to her over far, far too many drinks. Oraelia had been silent for a long time before giving a large exhale and then- 

“I think,” she had paused for a moment, “I think that you should stop being so afraid and talk to him about this instead of beating yourself up, sister. You aren’t asking for anything that you aren’t entitled to, Alaysia. You don’t owe anyone a child, but speaking from experience as a ruler? You are right to realize that he may one day need an heir. It would be foolish to ignore it, so...just talk to the man. See what you both come to. Heirs are easier to come by than,” Oraelia came to a full stop and chewed over what she was going to say long enough to make Alaysia uncomfortable, “that what you two have in one another.” It had been sound advice, but that didn’t mean that she had to like it. 

A day and much stressful drinking later, Alaysia’s party had each offered her items or spells for her arm-wrestling match. She had told them the stakes and they had all seemed equal parts invested in the potentially humorous outcome as well as not being stuck there with her for a month. They did not entertain the idea of leaving her behind. It warmed her heart in an unexpected way. 

There was one issue with the bet which the party didn’t know about. It had arisen when Alaysia had, in a poor attempt at being funny, accidentally made an additional bet. That bet had been the part giving her the most anxiety. 

_ Little Elf, _ he had a rich, deep laugh. It sounded warm and inviting. She loved the way it echoed through the sending stone, _ if you can best me at arm-wrestling, of all things, I will have you your own crown made and your own wing added to my castle.  _

_ Bah, _ she jovially responded,  _ that’s a bit too decadent for me. Perhaps I’ll just take some fancy Dragmirian title. Ya have any of those? _

_ Not really, no. But the last man a kingdom sent to kill me called himself the Greatest Demon Slayer in the Land before I cleaved him in twain. You can have his title, I suppose.  _

_ Demon slayer? Me? I mean, I do that, but that’s no title and no one in their right mind would believe me.  _

_ I can make one for you if you like.  _ She laughed heartily at that. 

_ I know, I’ll just steal your title.  _ Alaysia was not the most charismatic person in conversation, especially not while sober. “ _ Demon Queen Alaysia.” I can see it now, I- _ her words finally registered to her and she went silent. Lorkhan also said nothing. The silence had been a measured one. 

**_Demon Queen Alaysia_ ** _ , hm? _ He seemed to roll the words around as they were spoken, tasting them in his mind and finding them quite palatable if his humming consideration was anything to go by. _ You do know that tempting me to lose the match is cheating, right? _ Lorkhan’s voice was lower than normal, sounding more like the times they found themselves spent in bed after their various meetings in the past. His laugh was husky in a dangerous way that reminded her of something hungry. _ I like it. Deal.  _

Fuck. It still made her warm in the face to think about. She knew that he knew it had been meant as a joke and that it hadn’t been a serious offer, but he seemed so  _ willing _ to take it as such. She found herself thinking about it as the time between then and now grew before her. Anxious thoughts about how unfit she was to be a queen and how that might affect Lorkhan aside, Alaysia still wanted to win the competition. She’d resolved to do her best, to be bluntly honest as she always was, and let what may happen come. 

Oraelia, absolutely beside herself with glee when Alaysia informed her of the situation, had helped alleviate some more of the fears she had by informing her that the title of Dragmirian Queen came with only a very short list of actual duties. Much of the rule was patriarchal, and Lorkhan’s grip on his duties as king was a measuredly skilled one. The queen’s main job was to support the king and make sure any would-be assassins missed their mark. Aside from that, creating heirs was on the list, but Alaysia had decided to ignore that entirely after their previous talk. She was not ready for another child and wouldn’t be for a very long time. Lorkhan would just have to be okay with that if he wanted whatever this was to continue because she would not allow things to proceed until she was confident that all of the cards were on the table and they both had been afforded the time to review them justly. 

So there she sat, dawn bearing down on them like a hangman’s noose as the city came into view on the horizon. Alaysia was notably nervous, even to her companions. The ship was still invisible as they hovered over the town, low to the ground above a tavern Lorkhan frequented this time of day. Oraelia had them wait there and Alaysia contacted Lorkhan, all false bravado about how she was going to wrest some humility into him today. He offered to let her wrest a few other things for him as well and, in more familiar territory with the jovial flirting, she shot back that if he wasn’t careful, he would end up leashed like one of her wyverns. He said as long as she kept those damn boots of hers on and nothing else, he would gladly let her. It pulled an easy smile to her face.

The continued banter did much to comfort her. By the time that the lion of a man was seen striding towards the bar and the invisible ship, red hair burning in the hot sun, she was far more at ease. He wore simple, comfortable-looking clothes in a light tan color that included an open vest and baggy pants, cinched around his calves in a way that made them balloon out a bit to help disperse the desert sun for those who could feel its burn. Lorkhan couldn’t, but the style was popular in his kingdom. He had only a single sword strapped to his back and gold bands wound tightly around his muscled arms and short horns, all glinting in the light. 

Alaysia used their invisible state to win a flash of surprise from Lorkhan as she soared down on Abraxos. He stopped at her sudden appearance, hand finding the hilt of the great sword on his back as the sun above him was blacked out by wings before registering the familiar shape of his little elf and allowing a pleased smile to crack his stoic face. Abraxos hit the ground and slid off of him to walk casually up to the king, pedestrians pausing in surprise to eye the exchange. 

“Where is this flying ship you’ve told me so much about, then?” Alaysia gave him a fox’s grin and waved up to the space where the ship hung heavily. After a moment, it bled into existence, drawing the gaze and gasps of the crowd below and their ruler. His heavy brows rose high, almost as though he hadn’t believed her when she’d told him about it. Alaysia just barely caught a muttered comment about showing off, but she was too excited to see her friend to make much comment on it. 

“Well,” she gestured at the tavern, “let’s go then. I have a competition to win, after all.” His eyes tilted back down to her mischievous look and his smile, small and pleasant with a predatory air, returned. 

“Is that so, Little Elf?”

“I am absolutely confident that you don’t stand a chance.” His eyes narrowed and his lip curled up at the confidence in her tone. Oh, how he loved the sheer gall of his Little Elf. 

He followed her into the tavern, the party joining them to watch, and found a table. After a quick round of drinks, they got down to business. It was a close match. Each one putting all they had into the bout. People around them, including the tricky little cleric they had picked up on their travels, started placing bets. Alaysia was the undisputed underdog, but as time went on, just like their first meeting, people came around to calling her name the longer she held on. Or rather, they chanted  _ Dragon Elf! Dragon Elf!  _

With a surprised twist of his face, Lorkhan’s muscles spasmed. His hand trembled and with a resounding  _ crack,  _ their hands hit the table. Alaysia, having claimed victory, glanced back at the cleric. They had become fast friends as he was just as good at bending luck to their favor as he was at bending the luck of others against them. He was facing away from her, but not so much so that she couldn’t see the mischievous smile on his face. She made a note to pay her “sudden” good fortune forward in his direction sometime soon. Then again, it was clear he had bet heavily against Lorkhan judging by the coins he was receiving from the irritated-but-impressed Tieflings that had watched the match. Maybe that would be payment enough for the normally somber gambler.

There was a good-natured utterance behind her that sounded very much like her name. She bit back the grin that threatened to split her face and reigned in the purr that rolled up from her chest into a more socially acceptable hum. She turned to face Lorkhan, who had moved quite deftly for a man his size to tower over her as a mountain looms over the ocean. Much like the ocean, she paid him no reverence aside from acknowledging him, broad and strong, in her wake. 

“Did you say something, Lorkhan?”

“I said, you seem to have gotten stronger, Alaysia. Unnaturally so.” She chuckled at his words and shrugged.

“Such is the life of an adventurer.”

“A story I should certainly love to hear.”

“In time, perhaps.”

“In time.”

Lorkhan regarded her for a long time, almost looking stern, while the people around them equal parts grumbled and chatted excitedly. She picked up some of them in her peripheral motioning at her excitedly as though they remembered her from their last meeting. Finally, the king’s face split with a grin and he swept her up to him, surprising Alaysia along with perhaps everyone else in the room. The hug was crushing and heavy, but not so heavy as the breath that left him as he held her. 


	2. Bloom

“It is good to see you again, Little Elf.” His voice was muffled by her long, braided hair and the tenderness of it touched her heart, drawing that twisting feeling in her gut again. She masked her skittish acceptance with a reciprocal murmur. In spite of the racing heart in her chest, his arms were warm and firm around her and his breath in her hair was slow and welcoming. She wanted to melt into him, but there was ever work to be done. 

“Lorkhan, dear. You do know that being strong does not exempt me from being crushed, right? Besides, I might have something for you.” He held her for a moment more before setting her back on her feet with a low rumble, looking as happy as she had ever seen him. 

“What more could you bring me than you already have, Little Elf?” His voice was honey again, pouring languidly from him as he spoke. 

“Walk with me? I’m not sure that it will work, but I believe it will prove most beneficial to you and your people if it does.” He huffed and looked her up and down once more, taking in her riding leathers, the boots that gripped her legs up to her thighs, the loose white canvas shirt she wore tucked in. It billowed out comfortably and did much to hide her large chest, though not near as much as the flat leather armor she normally wore. Alaysia, for her part, did not shrink from his gaze, but rather seemed to bow up into it, running a hand down her tightly braided hair and flicking it at him as she did.

Lorkhan sighed and shrugged, “Very well.”

Bidding adieu to her party members quickly and informing them to have their fun in the city while she had hers, Alaysia led Lorkhan from the bar. They were briefly accompanied by Oraelia and Sadish and meandered slowly down the street, only stopping to watch a few children run by. 

One had his arms out, mimicking a flying dragon. Another followed behind him, her hair braided in unmistakably the same fashion as Alaysia’s, who was shooting little wooden sticks from a toy bow. They were laughing and giggling as they ran and the sight of it halted Alaysia in her tracks. Something between great pride and great sadness reared within her as she watched them. She was so distracted by the two that she didn’t see the third child, tottering on little maroon toddler legs, until she had wrapped herself firmly about Alaysia’s leg and began squealing delightedly.

“Da’ger Lady! Da’ger Lady!” Alaysia seemed to stop breathing for a moment, mind filled with images of a little emerald-hued boy with a heavy Orcish jaw like his father’s resting against her as he wrapped around her leg and begged for another go on the family’s guard drake before bed. His grip had been stronger and he had been bigger than this little girl, but the unmistakable joy of being near her had been written just as clearly in his eyes- those eyes that had so perfectly mirrored her own- as the crimson little orbs that looked up at her now. 

Sadish and Oraelia looked on in thinly masked horror as memories surged forth like a flash flood and left her there, staring like a fool in the path of a landslide. The ranger had always been outspoken on her distaste for children and her expression as she regarded the little girl with her face pressed into her knee screeching with delight was unreadable. Oraelia moved first.

“Oh, no-no. Let go, little girl,” she sounded nervous as she tried to pry the baby-strong grip of the little girl off of her sister’s leg. “Come on, you. Need to.  _ Let go _ .” The little girl only responded by turning her jubilant tones to unhappy wails. 

“ _ Da’ger Lady? Da’ger Lady! _ ” The change in tone cut through the fog cloud hanging about Alaysia’s mind. She pushed Oraelia away with a start.

“It-it’s fine, Oraelia. I’m okay. She’s fine.” Alaysia felt old memories stored deep in her muscles slide back to the surface as though they had never gone dormant, prompting her to deftly scoop up the little girl in her loose pants and a tunic-like shirt, settling her on the large swell of her hip. The girl chewed her fingers with pointed little teeth and sniffled shyly. 

“What did you call me, Little One?” Alaysia brushed a few curly black locks of hair from the little girl’s face that had fallen when she began to wail. She gave a bleary smile and pulled her hand from her mouth to place a finger to Alaysia’s chest.

“Da’ger Lady,” she said matter-of-factly. 

“Dagger Lady?” Alaysia looked back at flabbergasted Oraelia and Sadish for a moment before Lorkhan interjected. 

“The children have taken to your stories. They call you the Dragon Lady. Some of them carry little charms or dolls in your likeness from descriptions I’ve given them,” he seemed to be caught somewhere between several emotions as he watched her. He had seen the moment of panic as she looked down into the face of the strange child. Lorkhan, for his part, understood that she was in pain, even if he couldn’t quite comprehend the pain she was feeling. He also saw a tenderness about her that he hadn’t seen before. She was so careful with the little girl. Like a tiny ceramic bird, even for all of her hesitation. Alaysia moved as though she’d always had a child on her hip and it was, he dared allow the thought to surface in his mind, almost inviting looking in a strange way. It was certainly a side of her that he’d never dared hope to see.

Lorkhan pushed the thought from his mind after a moment. He knew children were a sensitive topic, but he was happy to see that she didn’t avoid them or react poorly around them as Oraelia had alluded she might. Instead, she cooed gently to the girl, looking about for parents to hand her off to. Oraelia and Sadish recovered from their shock and parted from them, heading towards the market. It didn’t take long after that for a panicked cry to meet their ears as a Tiefling woman came bounding from around the corner, tears in her eyes and calling out.

“Crim! Oh, Crim. Where did you go?!” the woman’s eyes met theirs and registered the little red bundle in Alaysia’s arms, now playing with her braid as Abraxos hung heavily from her opposite hip. He wasn’t happy but he knew not to snap at children. It didn’t stop his cat-like mumbles of distaste at having his mother’s attention directed elsewhere. “ _ Crim! _ ” She dashed towards the pair with her arms out. 

Alaysia handed over the child, who fussed for a moment at having been separated from Alaysia before realizing her mother’s arms were around her again. The mother, a darker shade of red than her daughter, began stammering apologies to Lorkhan. He gave her little more than a grunt and a few soft assurances that it was fine. The girl tugged her mother’s shirt and pointed at Alaysia, talking through her fingers as she chewed them again. 

“Da’ger Lady, mummum! Da’ger Lady.” The woman’s eyes flicked to Alaysia in full now. Her brow furrowed, unused to seeing someone with horns but no colorful skin. Alaysia kept her face carefully neutral as she recovered from the convergence of memories. All at once, the woman’s eyes lit up. 

“You!” She stepped towards Alaysia, “I remember you.” She moved to touch Alaysia and seemed to think better of it. “You came to us in the forest,” her eyes flicked to Abraxos, “your wyvern was...bigger?” 

“I use magic to keep him small. I don’t like parting with him. He is like my child.” the woman nodded at this. 

“Your friends made shelters for the sick. My husband would have died without them. And you brought in food from the forest.” Alaysia shifted uncomfortably. 

“Yes. It wasn’t much-”

“It was more than any other outsider did for us. And you brought us here, too. You saved us. You and his majesty.” The woman looked like she wanted to cry and she gripped the little girl, Crim, to her as though to comfort herself. Alaysia was taken aback. 

“I- I had help. My companions helped too. And Lorkhan was the one who asked for my help. I-” She swallowed as the woman began to tear up.

“His highness found you. You brought them to help us. You brought us one miracle after another.” The woman wiped at her eyes, bouncing the baby in her arms absently. “You are a hero here, Dragon Elf.” Alaysia didn’t have words for this and instead just stood there, mouth hanging open slightly from where her words had been stolen by shock. 

“You’ll have to forgive her. She is not used to being praised so openly.” Lorkhan had come to stand there with arms crossed across his chest, looking pleased. The woman put her arm on Alaysia’s shoulder. 

“You are a hero. You are  _ my _ hero. You are Crim’s hero, too.” She smiled down at her daughter. The girl had come to lay her head on her mother’s shoulder, lulled half to sleep by the rhythmic bouncing of her mother’s arms. “I know it is asking much, but I hope when your adventures are done, you will come to settle here, Dragon Elf,” she flashed a dazzling smile at Alaysia. “Besides,” she motioned to Lorkhan and leaned in close, whispering conspiratorially, “our king has been a bachelor since I was a little girl. He could use someone to soften him up a bit when we start reaching out to other nations for trade. Maybe keep him from getting too stir crazy, hm?” She gave Alaysia a wink and a smile. Alaysia returned the smile, though more because she was so taken aback than because she agreed. The woman offered a crooked bow to Lorkhan, ever mindful of the now sleeping child, and gave her last thanks before leaving them. 

What in the name of the gods above and below had  _ that  _ been?

“I forgot to mention,” Lorkhan’s eyes had lazily followed the woman as she left, “many of my people have it in their heads that I should marry you now.” He looked down at her with a brow lifted, gauging her reaction. Alaysia snorted at the absurdity of it. 

“Do they know I would make for a pisspoor queen?” Lorkhan shrugged at her words, completely unphased. 

“Some of them have already started to refer to you as the Dragon Queen. A little gift from your sister as she was hiding her own identity.” Alaysia cursed Oraelia briefly and colorfully. 

Alaysia finished the small tirade with a muttered, “she’s lucky I’m not telling the whole damn kingdom,” as they walked before Lorkhan interjected, asking about the thing she said she brought him. He was curious to know what else she could possibly provide for him. What he had expected was a trinket perhaps. Maybe some kind of magical bauble. She would find another way to surprise him, however. She always did. 

“Lorkhan, did you know that plants will be your friends if you’re kind to them?” Unsure of where this was going, he waited for her to continue. 

Alaysia ended up detailing how she had picked up some druidic magics. His people did not practice that kind of magic and nearly all of their clerics had perished escaping Dragmire. The main point was that she could encourage plants to grow. It would take her nearly two full days of uninterrupted concentration, but she believed she might be able to convince the sparse farmlands to work with his people rather than against them. In her experience, plants that had been communed with in this way often yielded double the harvest and she knew they could use the bumper crop. Only five miles, she said she could cover. That was all. 

“Five square miles of farmlands?” Lorkhan looked taken aback, “That is-” It was more than he knew what to do with and certainly more than they’d had prepared so soon after coming to Anaurach. 

“Not much in the grand scheme, I know. I was thinking that perhaps next time I was here I could do more. The magics should stay with the land for a year. It’ll ward off pests and blight too, which I thought might be useful and-” 

Lorkhan was on her all at once. His lips pressing into hers and silencing her voiced thoughts. They had simply been meandering through the city towards the palace as they had been speaking, but now the sky was turning to dusk and the sun was setting along the scimitar mountains, prematurely robbing the city of light. Most people were indoors now, eating sparse suppers and preparing for the hard work of the day to come. No one saw as he turned them and pressed her into the warm sandstone wall of an alley. 

Her back met the rough rock and her legs were pulled up, up and out from under her to wrap around him. Alaysia met his lips blow for blow, her hand running along a broad, dark shoulder before arching up into that shock of vibrant red hair. She half expected him to try and take her in this alley where anyone and their mother could have found them. She more than half liked the thrill of the thought, but it was dashed when he finally pulled away. Both breathless, he leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers, eyes closed and arms resting lightly on her thighs. 

“What was that for?” She looked at him quizzically.

“You said you would come back here after you left.” This gave her pause. Alaysia hadn’t really thought about it, but ever since they had set a course for Anaurach, she had intended for it not to be her last visit. The relief swelling behind Lorkhan’s voice and his sudden, passionate assault in response was also something unanticipated. 

“Of course.” She tried to play it off. “You still need me. I told you that you had my assistance with saving your people and I meant it. I gave you my word.” His red eyes opened to peer into her green ones for a moment.

“Is that the only reason you intend to return?” Lorkhan’s voice was carefully neutral. 

“I-” Alaysia paused for a long moment, holding his gaze. There was something hopeful and sad there. He wanted her to stay, that much was obvious, but he wouldn’t force her if it wasn’t her choice. “I’m always honest with you, Lorkhan, you know that.” He seemed to brace for a blow, his hands tightening around her legs. “And the honest answer is that I...don’t know. You are my friend. I like you,” she took a deep, shaky breath, “I like you a lot, but I don’t know if me staying here is,” another pause. She chewed her lip for a few seconds, and then, “I don’t know if me being here is a good thing for  _ you _ .” His brow furrowed at this and he started to speak.

“I don’t care if-”

Her hands moved to press into his mouth, “I  _ know _ ,” feeling his lips as they tensed with words she couldn’t hear. Not now. Any resolve to decide for herself would crumble if she did. “I know you don’t care, but I do. I need to think about this. It’s sudden and I’m just as afraid of whatever  _ this _ is going wrong as I am of it going right.” His lips slackened behind her fingers. He could understand that. He would have to, at any rate. Lorkhan’s hands, calloused in texture and soft in use just like the rest of him, rose to cup hers. He tugged them down until he could plant a kiss on the honeyed skin of her brow. 

“Alaysia. Look at me.” She hadn’t even realized she had dropped her gaze. “We have centuries to figure out what this thing we have is. We have a veritable eternity to make it our own.” He pressed a soft wrist to his lips, leaving another kiss on her skin. “There is no rush. There are no rules.” He brushed his lips across the knuckles of her other hand. 

Alaysia mulled over his words as he continued to pat his lips across her skin. He was right, but it didn’t chase away the fear. She had lost a lover before. Losing another one- losing Lorkhan- would break her. It was something to dwell on, but another time. 

“Come on, you brute. Let me down. I need to see to those fields.” Lorkhan was miffed at this.

“The fields can wait a day. I want you to come to the castle with me.” Alaysia formed a knowing smile at him. 

“We both know that as soon as I step foot into that castle, I won’t be leaving for a few days, at least. This is important. We have an eternity, remember? What is a day or two against that?” Her brow rose as she spun his own words back to him. Lorkhan was less than amused and he grumbled at her for it, but it only made her grin broaden. 

“ _ Fine _ . I will be in the castle when you finish,” contrary to the irritable clip of his voice, his hands were moving softly up and down her ribs as he said it, feeling her breath. The minute movements as she relaxed into him. So small, so fierce, and so uncharacteristically soft when he pressed himself against her. He liked it. 

It gave him a wicked idea. 

Slowly, to not draw her suspicion, he pulled her back up to him so that his lips could find hers again. He was delicate at first, carefully deepening the kiss. Further and further, faster and faster, he allowed it to heat up. She met his challenge out of instinct, rising to the bar as he pulled her carefully tucked shirt from her belt and- 

_ Wait a gods-be-damned second. _

He pulled back, devious plans now on hold. He had undressed her enough times to know that Alaysia did not wear a metal belt and certainly not under her shirt. He also had worn a giant’s belt enough to recognize one when his hands brushed over it. He looked down at her, surprised, amused, and slightly miffed. 

“I see now how you beat me, then.” Alaysia didn’t even try to hide her smile. 

“I really did mean it when I said there was a good story behind this. I stole this belt from a dragon demigod of greed, I’ll have you know.”

“You cheated.” She feigned a hurt look at his pout.

“No, I evened the playing field.” 

“I’m pretty sure that if you use tools to give yourself an unfair advantage, that’s called cheating.”

“Lorkhan, I’m pretty sure that if I have to use a stool to reach the top of the pantry and you don’t, it doesn’t make you a better chef, it just means you have an unfair advantage in a pinch. I leveled the playing field and beat you with experience.” She turned her nose up at him playfully. 

“Mhm,” he slid a finger under the belt she had carefully hidden under her clothes, “so you won’t mind if I peel this  _ tool _ off of you now?” She snorted at the faux sultry tone of his voice and shrugged.

“Just make sure you give it back to me. I use that for my wyvern.” Lorkhan didn’t dwell on the implications of her wyvern being able to attune to a belt of giant strength. Instead, he snapped the buckle open and slid it down and out of her shirt, letting it clatter onto the ground. “You going to let me down now? I have a desert to make bloom for you.”

Lorkhan pressed his forehead back against hers, holding her gaze with eyes that were warm in more than just their color. “You know, you are quite the mouthy little thing to be stuck between a rock wall and a hard place like you are, Little Elf.” That got a real laugh from her. 

“Oh please. You may be many things,  _ Demon King _ , but you are still a man. You still wake up in the morning with an uncontrollable hardon and you still bleed when shot. You’ll have to try a lot harder than that to shut me up.”

“Is that an offer?”

“Stick around long enough and it’ll be a threat.” He ducked down and nipped her lip with fang-like teeth. She racked her small horns against his forehead just hard enough to take him back and then buried her feral little elven teeth into the soft flesh of his throat. Gods. She knew just what to do to him to make him feel wild. 

The snarl that started in his chest ended in her own and she wanted  _ badly  _ to see just how loud they could get in this alley before someone came out to see if someone was fucking or getting mauled by some dessert creature. Alaysia wanted to see just how blurry the line between those two situations could get. But no. Responsibility first- fucking hell- godsdamned responsibility had to come first. 

She had to psyche herself up to push him away when he came back at her, full force. Lorkhan’s hands wrenched her down as she released the savage bite on his throat and his cock was needy when he ground it against her core. She wanted to know just how needy he was in that regard as one hand shot for her breast, massaging it appreciatively. She wanted to know if he was as needy as she was in this moment, with his hand raising to wrap around her throat and squeeze just enough that he could leverage her face up to look at his. Lorkhan’s hips rubbed against hers like waves against the shore and she wanted to jump him like a fucking animal and- 

_ Responsibility. _

“ _ Lorkhan. _ ” She finally managed. 

“What, woman?” 

“We  _ will _ finish this later. I swear that on my own blood, but I need you to let me finish my work here.” His hand fell from her throat to her shoulder and his head fell back as though to ask the heavens why they toyed with him so. Lorkhan remained this way only for a moment before looking back down at her. 

“You’re right.” He went to pull away and she moved her legs to stand, but no sooner than Alaysia’s feet hit the ground, he’d spun her around to face the wall and his hand was undoing the fasten to her pants. She tried to protest but that warm hand of his was slipping into her heat in a practiced way that made her words crumble on her tongue. His other hand was planted between her shoulder blades and shoving her roughly into the wall. He leaned in to hiss into her ear while his hand left the space between her legs, seeming satisfied at the slick he found there. “We can make this quick, then. Pick back up later?” There was a moment of movement and rustling behind her and then she felt the tip of him prodding at her and the hand between her shoulder blades moved to position her hips. 

The suddenness of it all subdued her long enough for him to slip himself inside and the movement drew the most astounding sigh from her. It rose from her lips with all the power of a shout to his senses. The soft gasp of it, as though feeling him inside her pushed away the discomfort of her travels, as though the proximity to himself eased the tension of her body. It made him feel  _ good _ in a way that he couldn’t explain. He  _ wanted _ to do those things for her. And he would. But right now the impish nature he hid under the severity of his outward expression was boiling with delight. She wasn’t the only one who could play tricks.

Lorkhan wasted no time and set an unforgiving pace, rough and fast. He was a big man and she a small woman, so being denied the chance to acclimate was both a cruelty and a turnon for her. Alaysia enjoyed rough sex, that much she had made adamantly apparent to him. She could only press her hands against the wall amidst his onslaught, his own hands digging into her hips as he rutted against her. He was every bit the fierce desert animal she had wanted and she had to fight herself not to sound like a mewling whore beneath him because of it. 

That battle was easier said than won. It wasn’t until one of his hands left her hips and shoved a couple of his fingers into her mouth that Alaysia found she wasn’t being half as quiet as she needed to be and that that realization didn’t bother her one bit in the moment. She began sucking at the digits, determined to make him just as desperate to be quiet as he slammed in at the angle he knew drove her wild. Alaysia bucked and moaned as she sucked and he snarled lines of absolute  _ filth _ in her ear as she did, winding them both up further and further towards that most delectable release. 

“Once you walk into that castle, Little Elf,” he repositioned his grip and continued drawing himself about her, “I am going wear that little body of yours out until you don’t know how to breathe without saying my name.” A hand found her hair and wrapped her braid around his fist so that he could draw her head back, forming a salacious arch in her back. The shrill  _ yes _ he received in response made his abdomen clench in a telling way. “By the time I’m through with you, you won’t have the strength left in those damnable legs of yours to crawl out of my  _ bed _ , let alone ride that wyvern of yours.” His hand pulled her head back further for just a moment as his other came down to swat her behind. Something that started as a yelp and ended as a shameless moan came from her and he nearly faltered. No, not yet. He needed to end this abruptly. He needed her to come back  _ wanting _ what he had to give. He wanted his Little Elf to be  _ ravenous _ for him. 

“Tell me you want that, Little Elf,” His hand came down again, harder, and she jumped and gasped again, wild with the pain as it intermingled with the pleasure. So close. Gods, so close. “Tell me you want me to ride you like a bitch in heat until you can’t  _ fucking move _ !” She was trembling around him as he used the rope of hair to drag her back to him, pressing his teeth into her delicate ear just as harshly as he had his words. 

“ _ Oh, gods,  _ **_yes_ ** !” He could tell by the way she began to tense and shudder that she was almost there, but her response was all he had needed. Lorkhan drove himself into her needy core once more as deeply as he could and cursed as he came, hot and hard into her core. She was still for only a moment before she began squirming against his still twitching cock, desperate for her own release. He would give it to her. He would give it to her a hundred times over if she asked him to. He’d give it to her a hundred more times after that for his own benefit too. 

In time. 

Lorkhan remained still and buried in her and Alaysia continued all but thrashing until he had to grasp her hips again to stop her. The color with which she was cursing him as he did could have painted a thousand murals and every one of them would be of her own personal pit within the Nine Hells. Her words became more vehement when he finally gave one last, lazy stroke and drew out of her, chuckling over her indignant spatting. 

Alaysia was burning from the inside out. She had been so close and she hadn’t had any significant release since the last time she’d been with him because they’d been so busy and her various other bed partners were lackluster in comparison. Now here he was, teasing her and...and what? Did he think she wouldn’t follow him to the castle now, responsibilities be damned?

She got her answer when he hastily pulled her pants back up over her rump, enclosing her now sloppily dripping heat in her tight pants. Before she could even get a coherent complaint out that wasn’t just cussing him for leaving her needs unfulfilled, he muttered something that sounded like an incantation. A swirling vortex emerged from the wall next to them and before she knew it, she was being thrust through. 

When Alaysia landed, she felt herself hit something soft and loamy. Laying on her side, she looked down to see dirt. Whipping her head back to where she had fallen, she saw Lorkhan smiling cheekily down at her in a devilish way, sliding his own pants back into place. 

“I’ll take you up on that riding lesson in two days, as promised, my Little Elf. Don’t keep me waiting.” The haughtiness of his voice in the last line had her damn near seeing red and she chucked a handful of the dirt at the portal, hoping to hit him right in that damn smiling face. He was a second too fast and closed it before she could. The handful of dry, near barren dirt sputtered sadly back into the ground and Alaysia sat for a moment, panting. 

She remained like that for a short while. First, she thought she would finish the job herself, but that would cause two problems. One, if she pulled off her pants the dirt and sand would find its way into places she never wanted dirt and sand again. She knew this for a fact from her own experience. Two, if she left her pants on, her own orgasm would push the ludicrous amount of ejaculate he had just left her with out and into her pants, leaving an even bigger mess and also making it appear as though she’d half pissed herself. 

The other option was to waddle awkwardly back to the ship and, again, look like she’d half pissed herself the whole way. She certainly wasn’t riding anywhere with how sensitive her sex felt after all that, so that was out too. 

Hot and frustrated, Alaysia once again ignored her own needs and saw to the fields, but not before vowing vengeance against that  _ boy _ in the castle  _ she _ found for him. She would have him beg for mercy and  _ he would be left wanting _ , so help her. 


End file.
